Related papers: Magnetic reconnection in partially ionized plasmas
It is proposed that reconnection would be a main mechanism governing the plasma processes on auroral time scales in the topside ionosphere/high-latitude magnetosphere transition. It occurs in the downward current region between two narrow…
Magnetic reconnection is a ubiquitous plasma phenomenon that plays a critical role in particle heating and energization. During reconnection, the topology of magnetic field rearranges, depositing energy into the surrounding plasma through…
Relativistic magnetic reconnection events can widely exist in magnetized plasmas in astrophysical systems. During this process, oppositely directed magnetic field lines reconnect and release magnetic energy, efficiently accelerating…
Alfv\'en waves are a particular class of magnetohydrodynamic waves relevant in many astrophysical and laboratory plasmas. In partially ionized plasmas the dynamics of Alfv\'en waves is affected by the interaction between ionized and neutral…
The physical processes that control the partition of released magnetic energy between electrons and ions during reconnection is explored through particle-in-cell simulations and analytical techniques. We demonstrate that the development of…
Properties of plasmoid-dominated turbulent reconnection in a low-$\beta$ background plasma are investigated by resistive magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations. In the $\beta_{\rm in} < 1$ regime, where $\beta_{\rm in}$ is plasma $\beta$ in…
Magnetic reconnection is a primary driver of particle acceleration processes in space and astrophysical plasmas. Understanding how particles are accelerated and the resulting particle energy spectra is among the central topics in…
The onset of the acceleration of ions during magnetic reconnection is explored via particle-in-cell simulations in the limit of a strong ambient guide field that self-consistently and simultaneously follow the motions of protons and…
Slow-mode shocks are important in understanding fast magnetic reconnection, jet formation and heating in the solar atmosphere, and other astrophysical systems. The atmospheric conditions in the solar chromosphere allow both ionised and…
Magnetic reconnection is an energy conversion process important in many astrophysical contexts including the Earth's magnetosphere, where the process can be investigated in-situ. Here we present the first encounter of a reconnection site by…
The possibility of studying non-thermal electron energization in laser-driven plasma experiments of magnetic reconnection is studied using two- and three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations. It is demonstrated that non-thermal…
Evolving magnetic fields are frequently embedded in plasmas that are turbulent. When the primary interest is in effects that are on a large scale compared to that of the turbulence, it is desirable to average over the turbulence to obtain…
This white paper summarizes major scientific challenges and opportunities in understanding magnetic reconnection and related explosive phenomena as a fundamental plasma process.
The interplay between kinetic and macroscopic scales during magnetic reconnection is investigated using particle-in-cell simulations of magnetic island coalescence in the strongly-magnetized, relativistic pair plasma regime. For large…
We describe magnetic reconnection experiments using a new, pulsed-power driven experimental platform in which the inflows are super-sonic but sub-Alfv\'enic.The intrinsically magnetised plasma flows are long lasting, producing a…
Magnetic reconnection, topological change in magnetic fields, is a fundamental process in magnetized plasmas. It is associated with energy release in regions of magnetic field annihilation, but this is only one facet of this process.…
Magnetic reconnection is a fundamental process in solar system and astrophysical plasmas, through which stored magnetic energy associated with current sheets is converted into thermal, kinetic and wave energy. Magnetic reconnection is also…
Magnetic reconnection is a sporadic process responsible for energy release in space and laboratory plasmas. It is believed that the tearing mode instability may be responsible for the onset of reconnection in the magnetotail. However, due…
Magnetic reconnection has long been known to be the most important mechanism not only for mixing the plasmas by changing the magnetic field topology but also for releasing the magnetic field energy into the plasma kinetic energy. During…
A ray-theoretic phase space description of linear waves in a two-fluid (charges and neutrals) magnetized plasma is used to calculate analytic decay rates and mode transmission and conversion coefficients between fast and slow waves in two…